Enchanted
by Empress Raven
Summary: Aqualad has been enchanted with Raven since meeting her.


**Disclaimer: **I do not own Teen Titans, Aqualad, or Raven.

**Notes: **Dialogue taken from the series itself is courtesy the episode transcriptions that lived on, the now dead, Titansgo dot net. Thanks to Moth for saving those and getting copies to me.

**Summary: **Aqualad has been enchanted with Raven since meeting her.

* * *

**Enchanted**

The sea was cold. The farther you dove, the lower the temperatures dropped. The cold never bothered him. He found it almost comforting. The cold reminded him of home. Warm waters would only mean something foul. Cold, was preferable.

Living under the sea had always been everything he had ever wanted. Swimming next to his aquatic friends as he rode the currents and played in the water. Always keeping an eye out for danger, because even the sea is not safe. It was his job to protect. He was one of many chosen, but often it felt like the job rested on his shoulders alone. Maybe he took things too seriously? No, he did take things too seriously. That is why the fish were more his friends than his own kind. Even that never bothered him. He had never felt a need or desire for any form of companionship. He had never felt drawn to another person, even in friendship, so he spent time with the fish who lived in his waters instead. He enjoyed their friendship and conversations, and they enjoyed the peace he promised. It was a pleasant arrangement that everyone was happy with.

Things change.

Trident threatened that peace. Convinced that he was the perfect Atlantean, he set his sights on taking over Atlantis and then the surface world. Aqualad couldn't stand for it, and sought out to stop Trident before he could succeed in his plans. Trident was Atlantean, it was his job to put a stop to him. He needed to take care of it before it left the sea and threatened the secrecy of his people. He needed to keep Trident from making it to the land. He never expected the land to come to him.

Land-dwellers arrived in a sea vehicle, apparently looking for Trident, who had broken one of the surface laws. While a green shape-shifter chased him, mistaking him for Trident, the real Trident attacked, and the surface-dwellers had their ship damaged, putting their lives in grave danger. Not being the type to allow harm to befall anyone in his waters, he allowed Trident to escape so that he could save them. He had them taken to his home, an underwater grotto on the outskirts of Atlantis, where there was an air pocket that they would be able to repair their ship in.

"Where are we?"

Her voice reached him just below the surface of the water. It rang in his ears and drew him in.

"My place. I told the whales to bring you here." He was compelled to answer her. Not only because it was the polite thing to do, but because he needed to hear her speak again. His legs carried him over to where she stood.

"Okay…uh…thanks." He couldn't help but smile. Being close to her filled him with an unexplainable joy. The blush across her cheeks was barely visible under her hood, but it filled his chest with happiness.

"Oh, yes, truly, truly, thank you so much for saving us." Another girl popped up. His smile deepened as he tried not to laugh at her obvious ardor. He opened his mouth to play off their praise, but was interrupted.

"He saved you? Hel-_lo_? I was there too, you know." The green one had surfaced from the water.

"You stopped Trident from kebabbing us with that souped-up shrimp fork?"

"Way to go!"

Well, I was gonna, but…"

He chuckled and walked over to the green one and the other two boys in his party to introduce himself.

"I'm Aqualad. Sorry I didn't introduce myself earlier. We Atlanteans try to keep a low profile."

"Good job. Don't think anybody even noticed you." The green one was being sarcastic, but it didn't bother him. He found the kid rather amusing actually.

"You're from Atlantis?" Her voice fluttered behind him, but this time it wiped the smile off his face. It was time for business. He turned and nodded at her.

"And so is Trident."

He couldn't help but allow his eyes to wander to her as he told the team, known as the Teen Titans, everything he knew about Trident. She was an avid listener, her eye contact unnerved him slightly, but it was polite. She was listening to what he had to say, serious about the matter at hand. She was a protector on the surface. She took her duties seriously. He liked that.

"As long as we're after the same guy, maybe we can help each other." He spoke to their leader, Robin. That was how teams worked, it would be the leader's choice if they were to aid him in any way. Having to rely on the decisions of someone else, he didn't like that. He preferred to work alone.

Beast Boy objected to his help, but in the end it was Robin's decision. He and Beast Boy were ordered to head out in search of Trident while their ship was repaired. He had trouble getting along with the green boy. The longer he spent time with him, the more he yearned to be back in his grotto getting to know Raven better. Beast Boy was impulsive and impetuous and seemed to harbor some kind of a grudge against him. After two run ins with Trident and a bit of arguing, it became clear why. It had been Beast Boy's mission. He saw Aqualad as a interference. Based on his attitude and skills, he probably didn't get many missions to call his own. He softened to the kid a bit, and after assuring him that he didn't think he was better than he was, nor did he care, they were able to put their matter aside and work.

They had found Trident's lair, where he had been apparently cloning himself. After a short battle and some quick thinking on Beast Boy's part, they managed to wipe out a good portion of the Trident clones before swimming out of the cavern he had hidden in, and right into the path of the Titans in their repaired ship, which used it's blasters to seal the clones inside.

It was saddening to think that the mission was over and Raven would return to her life on land, while he was to return to the sea. The first person to make him feel anything, and they were from two different worlds. He returned to to the land with them, to see them off to their tower which sat on an island in the bay a little over a league from Atlantis.

"Consider yourself an honorary Teen Titan." Robin presented him with a yellow disk with a big black "T" on it. A communicator. He had been given a communicator and welcomed as a Titan. He could call on them for help, or they could call on him anytime that it was needed. He accepted it calmly, knowing he would be able to see her again was enough.

"We couldn't have done it without you. Thanks." Robin said.

"Right back at you. It's good to know there's people up here I can trust." He turned to face the girls.

"Bye, Raven…Starfire."

"It was…nice to meet you." Seeing her flustered only made his smile grow. Too bad it wasn't to last.

"Oh, very, very, _very_ nice!" Starfire pushed herself into him. She might've been the obvious beauty, but her exuberance made her difficult to be around.

"What can I say dude? You're the best." Beast Boy approached him.

"Nah. You're the best."

"Yeah, you're right. And if you ever want me to prove it, I'm always up for a race." Aqualad chuckled at the boy and patted him on the head.

"Just try to keep up."

They took off running around the island of the tower. Beast Boy did a good job of keeping up with the Atlantean for the majority of their little race before pulling ahead. Aqualad saw it coming before the green boy did.

"Beast Boy! Look out!" Too late. The changeling tripped over a sea shell in the sand and went flying through the air and right into Raven. Her eyes were glowing black when she turned around, her powers gathered at her hands.

"You idiot!" Her powers picked Beast Boy up and flung him into the ocean.

"Raven, it's my fault." He felt her powers start to circle his body, felt his feet just barely leave the ground until she turned around and recognized him. Her powers faded as quickly as they had come.

"Oh, sorry.. Aqualad." She lowered her eyes from his as a blush crept up her neck and into her cheeks.

"No, it's my fault. I provoked him into our race. Forgive me?" She looked up at him, desperate to hide her blush and unable to speak. He had to struggle to hide his smile.

"Forgiven. Of course." She managed to get out.

"Good. I would hate to upset you so soon after meeting you."

"Oh no, I couldn't be upset with you." She struggled out.

"What about me?!" Beast Boy stood nearby, soaked from the bay. Raven's face returned to it's normal emotionless state when she looked at him.

"Yes, you I can be mad at. You need to watch where you run." She glared at the changeling and walked off.

"She is so mean to me! Why does she treat you so nice?!" He asked the Atlantean. Aqualad just chuckled. They had such a good relationship, he was almost jealous of the green kid for it.

* * *

Goodbyes were completed, and life returned to normal. Well, mostly normal anyway. He found himself swimming in higher waters more often. He couldn't keep himself out of sight of Titans Tower at least daily. He never made himself known, just swam by to see if he could catch movement in or around the tower. He wouldn't quite admit it to himself that he was looking for someone in particular.

Being so close to the surface so often, he found there were many ways he could help even the surface dwellers. He rescued quite a few swimmers who got caught in the current, prevented a few drownings, and in the process got some exposure on television in the news. He was uneasy about being photographed, but he was treated like a super hero, so he was hopeful that his home would be barely questioned.

When home made it's way to the surface, he was worried and annoyed. A friend from his early school years started making appearances on land, scaring some of the locals with her presence. He went off in search of her so that he could help get her out of the spotlight before things could turn sour, but of course the Titans came to investigate before he could resolve the matter.

He had wanted to keep it quiet so as to not draw more attention to his people. He hadn't wanted anything to happen to them, but Gill Girl had attacked them as she tried to make her escape. In the worst case of misunderstandings known to man, Robin had gotten it in his head that he had attacked Beast Boy and Cyborg. The betrayal and sadness in Raven's eyes as she looked at him, promising that her attacks would hurt him as little as possible, was nothing to the look on her face when he sicced starfish on her to stop her spell casting. He felt like a guppy for having to do it to her, but he just needed time to catch Gilly so that he could fix things and then explain.

Gilly wasn't up for mixing words. The Titans followed, offering their help as he tried to deal with the problem at hand. Beast Boy shifted and followed him into the sea after Gilly, who they eventually caught. She had once had a crush on him, but he saw her as a little sister. He should've known that she would get over him eventually, but when she told him that she had been on land to rescue Nero, her new turtle boyfriend, it was more than a blow to his ego. It wasn't until Beast Boy's incessant teasing that he realized what it must look like.

Returning to the Tower with Beast Boy, he was reproved by Robin for not contacting them to aid him, as surely 6 pairs of eyes would've been better to search for her than just one. Yes, he agreed with his statement that having five extra stalkers might have creeped her out more, but he felt that if nothing else, they should've known what was taking place in their city so they would've been prepared and not on their guard thinking that it was a villain needing stopped instead of something as simple and innocent as it was.

Cyborg had laughed it off, Beast Boy had forgiven him, and Starfire had returned to her flirting, though it was different now. He noticed her infatuation had shifted and become nothing more than a way to get Robin to notice her, and maybe even feel a but jealous of her attentions to the Atlantean. He felt almost relieved. He wouldn't have to deal with her vigor around him as much. Her eagerness left him on edge. He wasn't used to being persued. Raven had remained on the outside of things as explanations and lectures took place. She was relatively unconcerned about things, which worried him. He knew her early nerves around him couldn't last, but she was practically ignoring him. He didn't want to lose her favor.

"Raven, could I join you?" He had been invited to stay for dinner and while the other Titans argued about pizza toppings, he had followed the empath to the stairs that led to the roof.

"If you would like." Her monotone drifted to him, stabbing him in the chest. He was used to hearing something in her voice. He knew she wasn't one to show much emotion, but there was more in her voice when she spoke to him than what he was hearing now.

He walked with her up the stairs and onto the roof. She sat cross-legged near the edge, overlooking the bay so he sat next to her, the two of them relaxing in a comfortable silence. Her breathing slowed and her eyes closed as she soothed her nerves, apparently not wanting to meditate in front of him in the event he had wanted to talk.

"I'm sorry."

His voice had been so soft she had barely heard him, but her eyes popped open and she looked over to him.

"For what?"

"For causing you all trouble like this. I never meant to let things get out of hand. And for the starfish. I panicked and just needed to make some time to explain. I hope I didn't hurt you."

"You did what you needed to do to help your friend. It's nothing less than what any of us would do."

"You will forgive me then?" He placed his hand over hers. Her eyes softened and her cheeks flushed and he knew it would be alright.

"Just don't force me to kiss another starfish and I think we will be fine."

His laugh rang across the roof, and her gentle smile was enough for him. The rest of the evening went well in his eyes. She sat by him while they ate, though she didn't contribute to the conversation, rather choosing to listen to the others. It was nice to be able to just spend time with her, realize more about her personality and her love for solitude. After dinner, they all moved to the couch, where he sat next to her while Beast Boy and Cyborg played video games while Starfire and Robin cheered them on. She was content to just read her book while the others played and cheered. It was nice that she could spend time with them in such a way. She obviously was close enough to them that it was enough for her to just be there with them.

* * *

Though he continued to swim by the Tower daily, sometimes catching a glimpse of Raven floating on the rooftop in her meditation, others catching her with the others on their training course, he didn't get another chance to spend time with her again for quite some time. There was a disturbance in the sea near Atlantis that threatened the safety of his home, which kept him away from the surface world for quite a few weeks. When the threat became apparent, he was finally able to go ashore, though not for a happy visit.

"Your trash is in my ocean."

Brother Blood, the former master of the HIVE academy had taken his school, under the sea. He had stolen Cyborg's blueprints and used them to make a sonic resonator capable of creating a tidal wave large enough to wipe out all of Jump City. He had attempted to stop him, but Blood had used his mental powers to block his telepathy, preventing him from getting any help from his fish friends.

He, along with the Titans, embarked on the mission to stop Blood, meeting up with Bumblebee, another spy within the HIVE when they arrived. With her help, they managed to stop Blood and return to the surface. He had hoped for a few moments with Raven before things took off, but their city was in trouble, so he set off East with Bumblebee to search out Blood.

They followed some leads as soon as they arrived and everything pointed to the idea that Brother Blood was stationing himself in the area. Steel City was a dank and depressing place with short tempered citizens, a high crime rate, and tons of pollution. It was clear that they could only do good there as they continued to track Blood. Robin was only too happy to help them get set up. He arranged for Speedy, the talented archer, and the speedster twins, Mas and Menos, to join them and they began construction on a tower of their own. Officially dubbed the Titans East, they were having trouble getting their tower set up and ready, so Cyborg was contacted and set out to help them get things set up.

The team was getting off to a rather shaky start. Aqualad was uninterested enough in being in the team as it was, so being the leader was clearly not something he really wanted. Bumblebee had stepped up to more or less take over the job, which was completely fine with him. She was brash and a bit hot tempered, but overall she was easy enough to get along with.

Speedy was another story. He was egotistical, vain, lazy, and seemed to harbor a desire to set him off. They were constantly arguing and usually not speaking. Mas and Menos weren't bad. They were a little too energetic for his liking, and the fact that they only spoke Spanish was hard to get used to. He was certain that they spent the majority of the time making fun of the other members of the team, but they weren't hurting anything, so he could tolerate them. In general though, the entire team was just constantly at each other's throats and bickering.

Poor Cyborg came in during one of those arguments. Speedy had brought back fish tacos for lunch, not something that Aqualad was very pleased over. Bumblebee was annoyed that no one was helping her set up the tower, and Speedy was annoyed that Bumblebee was being bossy about getting the tower set up. Mas and Menos were just keen on the idea of picking on everyone, as usual. But Cyborg has some hidden leadership skills in him. He came in, took charge, got the tower finished in record time, and even had them working well together.

They offered him to stay on as their leader, before Blood attacked and took over their minds. The Titans came to help, and they managed to take down Blood completely. It wasn't to last though. Even with her so close to him, he still couldn't spend any time with her. They left shortly after the completion of the mission to allow them to better bond as a new team. He had hoped to at least get a few minutes with her, but even that wasn't given to him.

* * *

Things in the new tower settled in fairly well. He and Speedy started to get along, which was nice. They were similar in age, and he had never really had a close friend before, so having one was nice. They weren't the best of friends, obviously, but they at least got along, which was nice. Even with his newfound friendships, he found himself missing home, missing her.

He started traveling home often. He used the excuse that he wanted to check on things, and that he needed some clean water, and Bumblebee bought it. He spent much of his time floating around the tower watching her though.

Would it really be so hard to just, pop in and say hello? Would it look weird when he so obviously wanted to talk to her alone? Obviously, he would have to spend some time with the others as well. Would he even have time for any of that?

He propped himself up on the rocks at the shoreline around the tower as he pondered what to do. He wanted to speak with her, get to know her better, but he couldn't think of a way to do so.

"Missing home?" He turned to see her standing there, hood up, cloak blowing in the breeze.

"Um.. Huh?" Yeah, that was smooth.

"I asked if you were missing home. You return quite often."

"Oh! Yeah. It's weird being way from Atlantis for long periods of time like this. That and the water in Steel City is fairly polluted, so it is harder to swim in. We have the pool in the tower, but it's not the same." She floated over and sat next to him.

"It must be hard. Robin probably didn't even think about that when he assigned you to Titans East." She paused in thought. "I could say something to him, if you would like."

"Oh no, it's fine. I just visit when I can. It's not a big deal, really." He didn't want to trouble her. He was happy enough to be sitting with her, talking with her.

"Do you need the water?" He looked at her curiously. "To survive, I mean."

"Not really. I can live without it, though my powers are water-based, so it is fairly important. I don't need to be in the water, but it replenishes me, centers me."

"Kind of like my meditation."

"Helps you deal with Beast Boy?" He smiled as she smirked at his comment.

"Among other things. My powers are emotion based. I meditate to control them." He hadn't known that. He knew what her powers were like, but not why she had them, or how they were controlled.

"So how did you know that I come back often?"

"I'm an empath. I can sense you." Should've remembered that. Empathy was dangerous. He was still trying to sort out his feelings for her, he didn't want her to know them beforehand.

"It must be hard, sensing people like that all the time."

"It's not so bad. I'm well enough trained that I can block most of it out. I only open myself to sense someone who comes nearby. We've been betrayed enough that I like to know in advance when someone is too close to the tower."

"Makes sense." They fell into a comfortable silence until she broke it.

"What is Atlantis like?"

He smiled. It was more than he could ask for, for her to ask about his home. They settled into a easy conversation. He told her about Atlantis, and living with Speedy, and she in turn told him about living in the tower, and how she was raised by Monks and taught to never show her emotions.

"_That must be a sad way to live."_ He had said when she told him.

"_When it's all you know, it becomes routine. I can't say that I miss out on anything, but it can be troublesome."_

Their conversation was smooth. He was shocked at how easy it was to talk to her. She was beautiful to him. Her skin was pale, her eyes glowed, her hair was dark; they were all traits often seen in Atlanteans. She had a sharp tongue and she was so smart. She was well read and powerful. He was drawn to her. He felt desperate to get to know her more, spend more time with her.

They talked for hours, until the sun began to set into the ocean and he realized that it was time for him to be heading back to Steel City. Begrudgingly, he stood to say his goodbyes.

"Raven?" She had started floating back to the tower, but turned back to look at him.

"Do you think that we could do this again? Maybe the next time I come home to visit?"

"I'd like that." She gave him a gentle smile. "Travel safe Aqualad." And with that, she floated back to the tower, leaving him with only his smile, something to look forward to, and a warmth.

Raven was warm. For being so dark, he found it ironic that she filled him with such sunshine.


End file.
